Baggage baerow



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

J. W. HILL. BAGGAGE BARRQW.

.No. 248,743. Patents Oct. 25,1881.

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J. W. HILL.

' BAGGAGE BARRO-W. No. 248,743. Patented Oct. 25,1881. 2 r I Fig; 5

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Uivrren TATES JOHN w. HILL, or

PATENT @rrrca.

CINCINNATI, OHIO.

BAGGAGE-BARROW.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 248,743, dated October 25, 1881.

Application filed August 17, 1881.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN W. HILL, of Oincinnati, in the county of Hamilton and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Baggage-Barrows, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to barrows or handtrucks for handling railway and express packages, and has for its object the construction of a barrow which shall contain the usual frame andrunning-gear for transportation from place to place, an elevating frame or platform, which shall be arranged to raise an d lower easily and quickly by suitable mechanism, and a sliding frame or platform placed above and arranged to rise and fall with the elevating-frame, which shall be provided with suitable rollers or trackwheels, whereby the slidingframe may be rolled ofl' the barrow into the car, or be rolled from the car onto the elevated frame of the barrow, by means of certain mechanical combinations, and in the manner to be fully described hereinafter. I

In handling baggage with the ordinary harrow considerable time and effort is expended in transferring packages from the barrow into the car or from the car to the barrow, as each individual parcel must be handled separately and lifted from the barrow to the level of the car-floor, or vice versa, at serious risk to the safety of the parcels handled and to the physical welfare of the persons handling them.

The object of this invention is a barrow by means of which heavy loads of baggage or packages may be safely and quickly handled by a single man unaided, and the delivery of baggage or packages from the barrow to the car, or vice versa, by single pieces, as heretofore, is entirely avoided, thereby saving much time in making transfers of packages to and from the car, and reducing the physical labor required to handle heavy packages-as sample trunks and cases of goods-to a minimum.

My invention consists, first, in a novel combination, with the frame and running-gear ofa baggage-barrow, of a movable frame provided with suitable elevating and retaining devices, whereby baggage or packages having been placed upon the barrow when in its normal position are easily and quickly elevated to the level of the receiving car-floor, or vice versa,

(N0 model.)

the elevating-frame being constructed and arranged to move up and down in a vertical plane immediately over the main frame of the barrow; secondly, in the (30ll1bl112l.l1lOIl,Wllih the elevating-frame aforesaid, of a sliding or traveling frame or platform provided with suitable rollers or track-wheels and mounted upon and immediately over the elevating-frame thirdly, in a novel arrangement of winding-shaft, lifting-lever, friction-pawls, guide-sheaves, and lifting chains or ropes for the purpose of raising and retaining in any desired position the movable portion of the barrow; fourthly, in a novel combination, with the friction-wheel and friction holding-pawl, ofafriction-brake to regulate the descent of the movable parts of the barrow when loaded; fifthly, in the combination, with the elevating-frame andlifting chains or ropes, of an ad 3 nstablefastening of the chains to the frame, whereby ditferen cesin thelengths of chains are equalized, and for a simultaneous lengthening or shortening of the chains, the elevating-frame will be caused to rise or fall in a plane parallel to the main frame of the barrow and always preserve a horizontal position with reference thereto.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of my improved baggage-barthe elevating-frame cut away to show the lifting-gear below. Fig. 3 is an end elevation of the barrow from the rear. Fig. 4 are the de tails of construction of the elevating-frame. Fig. 5 is a longitudinal section through the main frame and winding-shaft; and Fig. 6 is a detached view, partly in section, of the lifting and retaining devices.

Similar letters of reference indicate similar parts.

A is the frame of a baggage-barrow, usually constructed of wood, bound together with tiebolts, and provided with the customary running and handling gear, B B and O.

The front wheels, B, are preferably mounted to turn the barrow in its own length for facility of handling in close quarters.

D is the elevating-frame, constructed preferably of angle-iron, with corner knees and braces d d, and, when necessary, provided with longitudinal truss-rods (not shown in the draw- 1 ings) to increase the vertical stiffness thereof.

row. Fig. 2 is aplan thereof, with a portion of E is the winding-shaft, mounted in suitable hearings in the longitudinal timbers of the frame A, and provided with winding-hubs e e and friction-wheel E, keyed to the projecting end thereof.

F F are chains or ropes, the inner ends of which are properly secured to the windinghubs c e, or to the shaft E, if desired, and which pass fore and aft to the ends of the frame A, where they turn vertically upward around the guide-sheaves'ff (mounted in the side timbers of the frame A, or, as shown in Figs. 3 and 5, mounted on the lower ends of the standards, to be described hereinafter) to the tops of the standards G G, and downward around the guide-sheavesg g to the elevatingframe D, where the ends of the chains or ropes F F are secured to the adjustable fastenings d d. The fastenings d d are made adjustable to compensatefor variations in the lengths of the chains F F, and to adjust the elevatingplatform D with relation to the frame A. The connection of the ends of the chains or ropes F F to the winding-shaft E is such that all the chains wind or unwind simultaneously, and are shortened or lengthened uniformly for any given motion of the winding-shaft.

Pivoted to the shaft E is a lifting-lever, H, furnished with a friction-pawl, h, which, upon the upward motion of the lever, engages with the periphery of the wheel and revolves the shaft E in the direction to shorten the chains F F and to elevate the frame or platform D. Afixed stop, 7L2, secured to the frame A, serves as a rest for the lifting-lever H when not in use, and also to hold the lifting-pawl h out of contact with the rim of the wheel E, to facilitate the lowering of the platform, as will be described hereinafter. The lever H is preferably pivoted to the shaft E by extension-pieces h h, one upon either side of the wheel E, as clearly shown in Fig. 2, to prevent obliquity in the action of the pawl h when under strain.

I is a holding friction-pawl, pivoted to the frame A at i, and by reason of the excess in weight of the hand-lever I caused to impinge against the periphery of the wheel E, and to forcibly contact therewith when the strain of the lifting-lever H is removed. The holdingpawl is firmly but loosely secured to the shaft E by means of links 11 4?, in order that the thrust 011 the pawl I, due to retaining the wheel E, and consequently the elevating-frame D, in any raised position, shall be sustained between the winding-shaft E and pivot i, and a corresponding strain removed from the side timber of the frame A.

From the upper side of the holding-pawl I an arm, 1 extends toward the frictioirwheel E, and terminates in a shoe, 6, which embraces a portion of the rim ofthe wheel E to form a friction-brake. The relation ofthe arm or brake I to the holding-pawl I is such that when the pawl I is in action the shoe i is clear of the rim of the wheel and when the shoe 1" is brought in contact with the rim of the wheel by raising the hand-lever I, the holdingpawl I is withdrawn from the rim of the wheel, and said wheel E is permitted to revolve in the direction to unwind the chains F F and lower the frame D at a rate of descent to be regulated by the pressure of the shoe i against the rim of the wheel.

It will be understood that the holding-pawl I, hand-lever I, and arm I are the several branches of a single member, performing thereby two separate and distinct functions--the first to serve as a friction-pawl to retain the elevating-frame D in any desired position,and, second, to serve as a friction-brake to regulate the descent of the frame 1) to its normal position on the frame A.

The standards G G are firmly bolted to the frame A, and, if desired, may be arranged to receive both the upper guide-sheaves, g g, and lower guide-sheaves,ff, as shown clearly by Figs. 3 and 5. The standards should bemade of cast-iron of neat design,and attached to the frame A in such a manner as to awnd lateral or longitudinal slip.

K is the sliding frtnne or platform, of wood or iron, mounted upon the elevating platform or frame D, and provided with track-wheels k 7.1, which are preferably of the form shown in Fig. 5, with a central V shaped groove, 7. to match the rails d d on the elevating-frame D. The straight sulfaces upon either side of the groove k permit the easy rolling of the frame on a flat soft surface, as the floor of abaggage or express car.

k L are the shafts or axles, extending transversely through the longitudinal timbers of the frame K, and are pinned to the side timbers thereof, to form journals for the trackwheels 7c, and to serve as a tie-rod to bind the frame securely together.

The operation of the barrow is as follows: Assume the elevating-frameD and consequently the sliding frame K at their lowest position, the elevating-frame D resting upon the frame A and the sliding frame K resting upon the frame D. In this position packages are piled upon the frame K until the maximum height thereof shall be something less than the clear height of the door of the car to be loaded. The barrow is then backed against the car opposite the side door, the elevating-frame D, and consequently the load of parcels, raised by means of the lifting-gear (already described) until the upper surface of the elevating-frame coincides with the car-floor, when the sliding frame K, with its load of parcels or baggage, is bodily rolled into the car. The packages or baggage having been removed from the sliding frame, it is then returned to its normal position on the elevating-frame D of the barro wand lowered to rest upon the frame A in the manner described. The reverse of this action occurs when the barrow is to be loaded from the car, the sliding frame being first elevated, as before, then run into the car to be loaded with the parcels to be put off, and then run out of the car onto the elevating-frame of the barrow and lowered in the manner previously explained.

Itis obvious thatother devices maybe adopted to control the rise and fall of the elevatingframe D; but what I have shown appear to be the simplest, cheapest, and most substantial for the purpose. Still I do not Wish to be confined to the precise arrangement shown, as barrows for special purposes may require some other devices for elevating the frame D, such as racks and pinions, or quick screws and nuts, or some other of the many well-known means for raising and lowering heavy bodies.

Having described my invention,what I claim 1s-- 1. A baggage and parcel barrow for railway and express use, consisting, essentially, of the frame A, provided with the customary runninggear, 13,13, and O, the standards mounted upon said frame, the elevating-frame D, supported by chains passing over sheaves mounted on the standards, and winding mechanism for winding or unwinding the chains, in order to raise or lower the elevating-frame, substantially as described.

2. A baggage and parcel barrow consisting, essentially, of a frame, A, provided with the customary running-gear, B, B, and 0, an elevating-frame,D, and aslidingframe,K, mounted upon and arranged to rise and fall with said elevating-frame D, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

3. The combination, with the frame A, standards G G, and elevating-frame D, of the winding-shaft E, friction-wheel E, lifting-lever H h, chains F F, and guide sheavesff and g g, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

4. The combination, with the frame A, standards G G, and elevating-fran'ie D, of the winding shaft E, friction wheel E, chains F F, guide-sheavesff and g g, and the holding-pawl I, substantially as andforthepurpose described.-

5. The combination, with the frameA, standards G G, and elevating-frame D, of the Winding-shaftE, friction-wheel E, chainsFF, guidesheaves f fand g g, and the friction-brake 1 substantially as and for the purpose specified.

6. The combination, with the winding-shaft E, lifting-chains F F, and elevating-frame D, with the adjustable fastenings d d, substantially as and for the purpose described.

In testimony whereofI have signed my name to the foregoing specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

JOHN W. HILL.

Witnesses EDGAR J. GROSS, GEO. W. HALL. 

